The Black Magic
by TheBeastThatLostItsPlaceToGo
Summary: Just a simple fic about Voodoo and his friendship with Rabbit, as well as Dusty and Deuce. More chapters are on the way.
1. Prologue

-For disclaimer, see profile.-

**Prologue**

"_When I get to Heaven, St. Peter's gonna say, 'how'd you earn your living boy? How'd you earn your pay?' And I'll reply with whole lot of anger, 'I earned my living as an Airborne Ranger! Blood, guts and a whole lot of danger!'"_

_ -US Army running cadence_

The Army Specialist, Adams, kicked in the door. Voodoo was the first one in; he needed to make sure his friends were ok. Preacher was in there right after him, M4 at the high-ready. Army Sergeant Patterson walked over to the doorpost where Specialist Adams was standing guard. They both looked at the two SEALs as they frantic walked over to the man strapped to a chair in the middle of the room in this godforsaken cave. Preacher looked at the two Army men and claimed, "We got them!"

Voodoo looked to the side. "Rabbit! Get Rabbit free!" He said as he began to undo the ropes holding his team leader to the chair. Preacher jogged to the last man.

"Rabbit?" He looked to Voodoo. "Let's get him up."

Voodoo finished untying his team leader Mother and walked over to help Preacher pick up Rabbit. _Jesus, what the hell did they do to you buddy?_ He thought. Voodoo could feel his eyes water a little at the sight of his best friend, beaten into a bloody pulp. His thoughts were interrupted when the Army sergeant cut in.

"Let's fucking hurry up guys!"

Preacher and Voodoo balanced Rabbit on their shoulders as Mother grabbed a weapon off a dead guy. He turned to Sergeant Patterson, "Rabbit's lost a lot of blood. We need to get him out of here."

While holding Rabbit, Voodoo grabbed his radio. "Jimmy, Voodoo. Jimmy, this is Voodoo!" All he got back was crackling white noise. "Fuck. Comm's not working in here."

The two Army men led the way out, followed by Mother and his stolen AK-74 carbine. He turned to the three men behind and tried to spur them on. "Come on!"

Voodoo was getting impatient. With all his gear on, Rabbit weight close to 250 pounds, and even though he and Preacher were both helping the wounded man, the truth was that Rabbit was still heavy to carry. _But this is your friend. Shouldn't you be giving 110% to save him? _"Let's fucking go!" Voodoo told himself.

"Let's go! We're almost there!" Preacher agreed, trying to keep Rabbit with them.

Voodoo saw the opening of the cave and tried again. "Jimmy, this is Voodoo."

"Go Voodoo."

"We've got Mother and Rabbit. We're moving back to Prowler's LZ. We need extraction now!" Voodoo shouted into his radio.

Mother walked back to Rabbit and put a hand on his shoulder. "Way to go. Keep it up Rabbit."

Jimmy's smooth voice came back. "WILCO. Get to the LZ Voodoo, we have visual."

Voodoo looked up and saw a faint glint of the UAV drone that was floating in the sky above them. "Rabbit's really fucked up! We're gonna need a CASEVAC for him!"

Jimmy was already working on it. "Roger that. Get to the helo, they have secured the perimeter. That is your extraction point."

"Roger Jimmy." Voodoo said as Rabbit closed his eyes.

"Put him here." Preacher's calm voice cut into Rabbit's ears. He opened his eyes and saw his best friend staring at him. Rabbit managed to blink his eyes as a way to say hi. The Army Sergeant walked up to Voodoo.

"How's he doing?" He asked. Patterson peered over Voodoo's shoulder. "Hey Rabbit, hang in there. We've got you. We got you."

Another Army guy walked up to the scene, looking at Voodoo. "Damn, this _cabron_ is really tough eh?

_Who are all these Army guys? Where's Voodoo going?_ Rabbit thought as he watched Voodoo walk away to regard the other Army personnel. The wounded SEAL could see his team leader in the distance, talking on his radio.

"Jimmy, how are we on that extraction?"

Jimmy tried to sound calm. "Mother, we are working on it."

Voodoo turned his gaze from Mother back to Rabbit. "Hey, doin' good brother. You're doin' good." Back to Mother. "What the fuck Mother? Where is our extraction?"

Mother tried pleading again. "Jimmy, Rabbit is bleeding to death. Where the fuck is the extraction?"

Jimmy didn't reply that time. Instead a different voice came on. "Mother, this is Colonel Drucker. Nightstalkers are on the way. They are coming from Kandahar."

Mother did not like that answer. "That's not gonna fucking work. Rabbit's hanging on by a fucking thread."

Jimmy's voice cut in. "He's a warrior. He's gonna make it Mother, they are en route."

Mother only had one reply. "Fuck."

Preacher stood off to the side, taking it all in. he took a deep breath and walked towards Rabbit. He knelt down and grabbed Rabbit's shoulder. "Hang in there."

Voodoo knelt beside him and tried to reassure his fellow SEAL. "He's gonna be okay, he's gonna be ok." _Are you telling Preacher that or yourself?_

Mother approached the three SEALs. Voodoo turned to him. "What's the deal?"

Mother's grim appearance said enough, but to make matters worse, he actually answered. "We have to wait. Birds are coming from Kandahar."

"No… No, no, no, no." Voodoo stood up. "Jimmy, Voodoo. What the fuck is going on? Rabbit's gonna die if we don't get off this fucking mountain now!"

And Rabbit closed his eyes again. He could feel himself losing the fight to stay awake. But he was woken up violently and when he opened his eyes again, he was looking at his best friend.

"You're almost there brother. You're almost there; you just have to hang on." The radio cracked and the operators could hear the extraction force announcing their arrival. Voodoo turned to the other SEALs. "We're losing him. Rabbit? Rabbit…"

And Rabbit closed his eyes for the last time.

_"Bagram, CASEVAC complete. Eight heroes aboard."_

The remaining, wounded Rangers were sitting quietly in the helicopter. Patterson, Adams, even that Air Force radio guy were just sitting there. Adams snuck a glance at the SEALs at the end of the helicopter.

Preacher looked at the draped body laying on the floor in front of him. He leaned forward and unhooked a little item off Rabbit's body. He turned to the mountain they had just left, still visible in the open back of the helicopter.

Mother could see the pain in Preacher's eyes. "This isn't how this ends."

Preacher looked back at the older man. "No, this isn't."

Voodoo was looking away from the rest of the passengers. He kept staring at the mountain. And when the Army's F15s flew past them and blew what was left of the mount, Voodoo felt himself letting it all go. A single tear ran down his cheek. He didn't want anyone to see him like this, but this was his friend. His battle buddy.

He wiped that solitary tear and turned to Preacher. He could see the little plaything in his hand. Memories of Rabbit flooded his mind. But all he do was stare at the object in hand.

Rabbit's lucky rabbit's foot…

**Author's Note:** Ok, well here you have it. The beginning to The Black Magic! I get so pissed when I see that no one writes any Medal of Honor fics so, I took it upon myself to do it! In case you haven't noticed, Voodoo is my favorite character, he is so badass! This is just a fic explaining what goes on in his head, concerning his friendship with Rabbit. Then also, it's gonna focus on the interaction between the SEALs and the Delta Force team on the other mountain. In the opening cutscene, you hear Mother and Panther talking about getting the guys together and Mother says Voodoo will excited to see Dusty and Deuce, so I figured, they'd be friends too! Ok, now on the subject of realism and the people they're based on. I understand that the SEALs, Deltas and the Rangers are based on real people who on Takur Gahr during Op Anaconda and I mean no disrespect. Rabbit, Panther and Mother's identities have been revealed (Google it), but the others haven't. So, not to disrespect, I'm going to be writing this from a fictional perspective, as if this never happened. So, fake names and everything. If you don't like it, tough. If you do like it, hope you'll stick around for the next few chapters…! And lastly, I know Mother had his M4 in the last cutscene, but I didn't like that. I felt Mother should've picked up an AK off of a dead guy. Anyway, please review!


	2. Chapter I

-For disclaimer, see profile.-

**Chapter I**

"_You SEALs are fuckin' crazy…"_

_-Unnamed Chinook tail-gunner_

Tuesday, September 11th, 2001, Fort Bragg, North Carolina

Footsteps paced back and forth. A muted TV was on CNN and was showing images of burning buildings before they went tumbling down. Two buildings hit by airplanes, the Pentagon struck, a plane in some field, the list of casualties went on. A metallic click sounded in the room, breaking the monotonous tone of Asolo boots hitting the carpeted floor. The pacing figure turned to the sound and saw a calm expression staring back at him.

"How the fuck can you be so calm Rabbit? The fuckin' World Trade Center just got bombed man!"

A shrug was the only response he got.

"We need to be on a plane, flying to God knows where, kicking some ass."

Rabbit stared at the custom M14 rifle in his hands. It was his favorite weapon to snipe with and he had been cleaning the weapon for the past hour while his teammate paced and cursed at the TV. The marksman had just slid the bolt forward, which had started his friend's rant all over again.

"Voodoo, we'll be on our way soon, you'll see."

Voodoo stroked the scraggly beginnings of a beard. "I do hope so buddy. I wanna know who did this to us and fuck them up!"

"You're about to get your chance Voodoo." A voice interrupted. Two men came from behind the door to a side office. Clad with beards and Oakleys, the two men took seats at their respective desks in the office. The team was assembled.

"D-boys are coming in a few, so we're gonna hold off on the briefing for now. What I can tell you guys is that your shit better be squared away because we're on a tight schedule. We're going to have to catch a plane and then we're going to be in the middle of it." The team leader started. "As always, we're going in with little to no support. We can't always count on the Army."

"Honestly Mother, that's a little insulting." A loud voice resounded. Mother saw the four newcomers enter the office and called his team to attention in respect to the Army's Lieutenant Colonel who entered the room. "At ease, take your seats gentlemen."

Voodoo went over to two of the newcomers. He knew them very well; they'd been on the same side during some training drills and a few little operations no one knew about. The two men, known as the "Double D" were some of the best shots Voodoo had seen and there was no better sniper/spotter pair than them.

"Dusty, Deuce. It's good seeing you guys again." Voodoo greeted.

Dusty scratched his ZZ Top beard and set his sunglasses on top of his head. "You too man. Heard you were out of town last week, you missed a great barbeque on Sunday."

"Yeah, Preacher told me. Couldn't do a thing though man. You know better than I do that when we're home, we have to answer to our old ladies."

Deuce laughed while Dusty smiled. "That's our curse brother. We're the ones who said 'I do.'"

Rabbit, Preacher and Vegas stood around, watching the two officers discuss some things in private before turning to the two teams.

Panther stood in front of the assembled operators. "Alright, as we all know, a few hours ago, downtown NYC turned into a shitstorm. Then to make matters worse, DOD gets hit. We can't have that going on, gentlemen. So here's gonna happen. We're going to get our bags, get into the van and head to Pope Air Field. We're going to meet up with our AFO contact, callsign Jimmy. He's going to take us to wherever he and his friends up at Langley want us to go. And then we're gonna kick some. Make your phone calls gentleman, you are not going home."

Voodoo watched his friends' expressions. Preacher's face turned white as he immediately thought of his pregnant wife. Rabbit closed his eyes and dropped his head. The "Double D" just looked at each other and nodded their heads. Vegas and Mother were noticeably stone-faced.

_I should call home. She's gonna hate me for this. It'll be alright, this will be my last time. I'll just tell her that I can't let the guys go without me this last time. Someone's gotta keep an eye out on Rabbit, right? She'll let me go._ Voodoo thought.

Panther's voice droned on. "This is it gents… Voodoo! Hey, Voodoo! Are you with us?"

Voodoo was shaken from his thoughts. He looked up and saw Panther's gray eyes staring at his blue ones.

"Stay with us Chief. You're almost dismissed." Panther went on for a little longer, going over the gear they needed to bring with them, but Voodoo was lost in thought again. Thoughts of anger and pain turned to worry as images of his wife flashed through his head. Then he felt a hand on his shoulder.

"You should call her man."

Voodoo looked up and saw Vegas standing before him. The soft-spoken culture guru was a good guy. A former Army Ranger, Vegas was a Sergeant First Class from the Army's elusive Delta Force that was selected for Tier One status due to his skills with foreign languages and cultures. If there was anyone that could turn an Operator into a local, it was Vegas.

Vegas was also known for being a generous and kind man. An Operator whose heart was as big as his brain, he was a walking contradiction. A man who would never hurt a fly, but was rumored to have broken every bone in his fist punching a guy for insulting his little sister at the mall.

Voodoo smiled at the former Ranger. "Yeah, you're right. You're always right man."

The bearded SEAL walked to his desk and picked up the receiver to his office phone. He began to dial but stopped. For some reason, this was something he just had to do. There was no time to listen to Julia's crying and her "I love you's." He needed to do his job.

Voodoo walked to his locker in the back of the office. There was an assortment of lockers in the back, belonging to the AFO team members and Voodoo had one in the middle, decorated with his name written on the door with a Sharpie and his team's symbol on it.

He opened his locker door and immediately his eyes rested on a picture of his wife, taped to the door. Voodoo had met her in San Diego, at his SEAL graduation ceremony where she was to support her brother. The brother he would later know as Mother, his team leader. The SEAL had walked over to the Lieutenant Commander and his family to introduce himself as well as heckle the officer in front of his family in good spirit. Then he noticed Mother's sister. Her name was Julia. With eyes as blue as the ocean and hair as golden as the sun, Voodoo knew right then and there that he was going to marry her.

Making the transfer from SEAL Team 4 to SEAL Team 6 was hard on the newly engaged couple. But after some reassurances from her brother, Julia finally let Voodoo go, on the condition that he always let her know that he was about to go to work. At first, the Operator was hesitant. After all, if he told her that he was leaving, she'd get worried. He didn't want that. But he agreed anyway, just to let her go with it. She was the perfect woman.

And now three years later, he was leaving. Panther and Mother knew something but they weren't telling the guys. Voodoo was worried. But he didn't have time for that. He didn't have time to worry about Julia. He was going to do his job.

There was a green duffel bag in the locker. Voodoo grabbed it and opened it up. Everything he needed was in there, even a New York Yankee's ball cap. New York City, New York. A place Voodoo called home. Before he was Voodoo, a Chief Petty Officer with the SEALs, Voodoo was young New Yorker who wanted a career as a fireman. But for some reason, after watching a commercial about the US Navy on TV, Voodoo knew that being a firefighter wasn't for him. He was going to see the world. And now, years later, he's doing exactly that. He took the picture down from his locker and stuffed it in his bag. He saw Preacher doing the same and Rabbit was clutching his lucky rabbit's foot keychain.

Voodoo smiled as the other two walked away and before Voodoo could join them, he reached in the back of his locker and pulled out his SOG Fasthawk, a small single-handed tomahawk. If he was going anywhere, that tomahawk was going with him.

The locker door shut as Voodoo walked towards the arms room. He pulled his custom M4A1 from the cage and slung it on his back. He would be using the carbine for close quarter battle, but his main weapon, his beauty, was in the corner. The SEAL picked up the M60 light machine gun, better known as "The Pig" and smiled.

It was just another day at the office.

**Author's Note**: Alright, well I apologize for the long delay. I've been busy with everything going on in my life. But here it is, the first main chapter to The Black Magic! I hope you guys liked it! I added some background to two of the main eight Operators and I will be adding to that as the chapters come. I also added an element that supposedly will be present in the sequel, Warfighter: the wives. I wanted that to play a role in these early stages before the Teams move out. And as they do their job, the focus shifts to survival instead the family they left at home. More to come!

Written while listening to Love Hate Affair and Ola Podrida


	3. Chapter II

-For disclaimer, see profile.-

**Chapter II**

"_They shall not grow old, as we that are left grow old; Age shall not weary them, nor the years condemn. At the going of the sun and in the morning, we will remember them."_

_-Laurence Binyon, "For the Fallen"_

Tuesday, September 18th, 2001, Gardez, Afghanistan

"Voodoo"

AFO Neptune

Two white pick-up trucks were weaving through an old road. It was early in the morning, 03:20 to be precise. Way too early for anyone to be up and about. They moved silently, or as silent as two trucks could go. The trucks were nearing Gardez, the RV point. On approach, they kept their headlights on, not wanting to seem suspicious. Inside the trucks, four Americans sat patiently. Tier One members of the US Navy's SEAL Team Six, only known as AFO Neptune.

Dividing the four man team into two trucks was easy enough. Mother, the team leader, would be in the lead and Preacher would back him up. For the Chief Petty Officer known only as Voodoo, it would be a little less easy riding in a truck with Rabbit, the sniper.

"Christ, Rabbit. Turn that shit off." Driving with one hand, Voodoo reached forward and turned off the radio. Rabbit had been playing some local music and it was driving Voodoo insane.

Over the past few days, the SEALs had been acquiring local garb to wear and growing their beards out. They sure looked the part but Rabbit took it one step farther and grew into the local music scene. His driver on the other hand, seemed a little more partial towards some good 'ole Metallica or Black Sabbath.

Jimmy had been feeding them good intel, especially for being a spook. Mother and Panther had been discussing plans as soon as they got on the plane for Afghanistan. Voodoo wasn't worried about anything on the ride over. It wasn't until he stepped off the plane where he got the shivers. Jimmy had also pulled some CIA strings and provided the Operators with a safe house a little ways outside Gardez. Finding some unmarked pick-up trucks was easy as well, as Preacher and Vegas secured some materials by bartering with some of the locals.

The SEALs, going by the collective call sign Neptune, had brought their weapons and expertise in close quarters battle. The US Army's contribution to the operation was a four man team from the elusive Delta Force, a team called Wolfpack. Neptune and Wolfpack had worked together before and many of the Operators were close friends. Voodoo chuckled to himself as he saw the four Deltas loading ATVs onto the C-17 leaving America. And now, miles away from home, Voodoo chuckled again, knowing that Wolfpack was somewhere on the other side of the town of Gardez, just cruisin' around on their ATVs. Their objective for the day was to link up with a local contact by the name of Tariq. Jimmy had spotted this man trying to reach out and Panther agreed that he would be a great asset. Mother had volunteered for the meet while Wolfpack would secure the overwatch.

Mother's voice crackled over the radio. _"Gonna get bumpy, you two good back there?"_

Voodoo glanced at Rabbit and smiled before answering. "Roger, we're good, except for Rabbit and his Greatest Hits of the Hindu Kush."

"_I'll take that over Preacher's hip hop any day. He might be the first guy I shoot."_

Upon reaching the outskirts of Gardez, the SEALs came across a checkpoint guarded by several heavily armed men. Preacher's voice cut in. _"Alright, here we go."_

Voodoo was cautious. "Is this your boy, Mother?" Referring to Tariq, the contact.

Mother sighed. _"Negative, Tariq's in a safehouse in town. These are his boys, we're cool. They're giving us his location."_

Voodoo didn't trust it. "Roger. Still, eyes open."

The bearded Operator from New York slowly halted the car and rolled his window down. One of the rebels approached him. Rabbit sat in the passenger seat and fidgeted with his weapon. The rebel spoke Pashto which Rabbit mentally translated as 'Greetings.' Hearing Voodoo greet the man back made Rabbit nod his head. His fellow SEAL then asked if the opposition knew that Neptune was coming, but according to the rebel, the Taliban left on Sunday. Voodoo finally asked the man if there were any illegal checkpoints around to which the man replied in English, "Everything cool here man," before offering a cigarette.

Voodoo politely refused the offered cigarette before calling the man 'Bro' and rolled up his window. Every fiber in his body was telling him not to trust the situation and from the look on Rabbit's face, the sniper felt it too.

Mother cut on the radio again. _"Voodoo, I have Tariq's location. We're moving out. Panther, is Wolfpack in position?"_

The Army Operator's smooth voice replied calmly. _"Affirmative. Gardez looks quiet from the south. You with Tariq?"_

Voodoo felt a little more at ease. Panther's team was one of the best the United States military could provide. With a sniper/spotter combo such as Dusty and Deuce and an Operator like Vegas, it was hard not to feel relaxed when hearing Wolfpack was in position. Especially with a team lead such as Panther.

A graduate from West Point Military Academy, the man known as Panther was a headstrong man. In his late 30's, he wasn't that much older than the other Operators, in fact Mother was older than him by a year or two. Age aside, Panther had seen some really tough situations. He had been to Somalia in 1993 and was present at what would later be known as the Black Hawk Down incident in Mogadishu as a 31 year old Delta Operator conducting his first mission as a Delta Force Operator. After surviving that, Panther had been sent on little black ops throughout the world, even getting boots on ground in Kosovo. Eight years after receiving the elusive Tier One status, he was thinking of retiring. Being promoted for what he felt would be the last time, the newly minted Lieutenant Colonel brought his supplies together for a simple hour playing with model aircraft before getting the call about the World Trade Towers being hit as well as the Pentagon. With mottos like "Develop the situation" and "Audacity, audacity, audacity!" Panther was definitely the guy one would want calling the shots. Even now, Voodoo was very hesitant to go any farther into this town, but hearing Panther's voice put him a little more at ease.

Mother's voice interrupted Voodoo's thoughts. _"Not yet. Let us know if things change."_ To which Panther replied with a simple _"WILCO."_ But Mother wasn't done yet. _"Hang on."_

The lead truck paused at the sight of several goats. Was it an ambush? Voodoo's fists tightened around the steering wheel. _"Voodoo…"_ Mother pleaded.

Rabbit could see Voodoo's smile return as he whispered "I'm on it." into the radio. A lonely goat's herder walked solemnly through the parked trucks. Voodoo rolled down the window again and stuck his head out. He yelled at the shepherd to move in Pashto but when the man wouldn't move, Voodoo simply yelled out in English, "Move."

Seeing the man move in the rear view mirror, Mother added with a snicker, _"Way to keep your head Voodoo."_

"Yeah, well that dude was a pound of trigger pressure from losing his," Referring to his and Rabbit's impatience. "Mother, we're gonna maintain four cars back. That dude said Taliban bugged on Sunday."

Preacher was skeptical. _"Yeah, them and everyone else."_

Mother was not deterred. _"Well… keep your fingers on the triggers. Voodoo, close the gap a little."_

"You sure Tariq has the intel?"

Standing up for Jimmy and their CIA brethren, Mother sighed. _"Langley seems to think so. He knows something, or else he wouldn't need all this security. Going left."_

Following Mother's truck, Voodoo guided the white pick-up through the deserted town of Gardez. It was like a ghost town. Not a single soul in sight.

"_What the fuck?"_ Mother. _"Voodoo, we've got company."_

The two trucks turned left into an alley full of rebels armed with AK-47s and H&K G3s. Rabbit's face showed concern as Voodoo turned to him. "Who the hell are these guys?"

Preacher's mind was in automatic Operator mode and he was in the game. A quick flick of the eyes and he spotted several men in vantage spots. _"Roof, twelve o'clock, one target. Eleven o'clock window, two targets."_

Rabbit tapped Voodoo on the shoulder and nodded to the rear. The New Yorker SEAL sighed. "Mother, we got a truck blocking us in on our six."

The two trucks came to a stop as Mother replied. _"Got it."_

Two armed men flanked the lead vehicle as more approached. Voodoo recognized some Russian and Arabic being spoken. "Chechens. Shit."

Clearly the men were telling Mother and Preacher to get out of the vehicle but Mother wouldn't have any of it. Preacher opened fire from his M4 and Mother screamed on the radio, telling both trucks to move. The Chechens opened fire as Preacher drove Mother's truck into a trap and the white pick-up exploded.

"Hang on Rabbit!"

Voodoo threw the truck into reverse and back out of the alley as far as he could before hitting the truck behind them. He swerved to the right and avoided the truck while getting shot at only to back up into a wall. The last thing Rabbit heard before everything went black was Voodoo's voice.

"Shit."

**Author's note**: So, I'm officially in the game now. We started off with the first level, where you have to save Tariq. Sorry to leave you in a cliffhanger, but come on, you know everything will be fine or whatever. Anyway, hope you enjoyed it and be back for more later! Please review!

This chapter was written while listening to Love Hate Affair, Minus the Bear and the Medal of Honor soundtrack.


End file.
